There are many ‘compression’ or ‘exercise’ suits which have been designed to improve sport and athletic performance. They have been specifically designed to have the right compression on the surface of the body to affect circulation and so improve oxygen consumption, delay muscle soreness, and increase power output of the muscles.
The known suits do not incorporate, and are not used for, another type of compression being a compressive force along the longitudinal axis of the trunk and/or limbs which we refer to herein as ‘axial compression’. Exercise to counteract axial compression helps develop axial joint stability of the trunk and limbs. Increased axial joint stability leads to improved activation of the core muscles, increased proprioception, improved performance, and helps with the prevention of injuries. It also helps strengthen the bones.
Gravity causes an axial compressive force on the body in a vertical direction. This compressive force compresses our joints, especially the spinal intervertebral discs. Joint compression as a result of gravity occurs during ‘body weight’ or weight-bearing activities of the trunk, lower limb and upper limb. The most obvious examples of weight-bearing activities that cause axial joint compression are in upright standing and walking where the spinal joints are compressed, holding body weight in upright ‘squatting’ activities where the lower limb joints are compressed, and holding body weight off the ground with the upper limbs where the joints of the upper limb are compressed.
In ‘closed chain’ exercises, body weight is moved while the feet or hands are fixed. This type of exercise is the opposite to ‘open chain’ exercise where the limbs are moving freely on the trunk: for example, kicking or throwing a ball, swinging a club or racquet. If the axial compression of the weight-bearing joints is not counteracted by the bodies antigravity muscle system, this compression will gradually cause injury and pain.
However, as gravity or ‘G’ is compressing the weight-bearing joints (see FIG. 1A), it provides sensory information about gravity to the joints. The antigravity muscles or ‘AG’ respond to the feel of increased compression and work in an opposite direction to gravity in a way which ‘decompresses’ and ‘stabilises’ the joints of the body to keep them healthy (see FIG. 1B). This also results in an increase in bone density.
Antigravity muscle forces work through three antigravity kinetic chains to lift the body weight against gravity. These antigravity kinetic chains also provide a ‘shock absorption’ role. The three chains are: the spinal antigravity kinetic chain; the lower limb antigravity kinetic chain; and, the upper limb antigravity kinetic chain. These three kinetic chains are linked through the core muscles in the centre of the body (as described in FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B). In this way, the antigravity muscles of the whole body can be coordinated to resist the compressive force of gravity. The antigravity kinetic chains are described in greater detail in Beyond the Core to Whole Body (C. Richardson, ed., Northwater Publishing, Brisbane, Qld, 2009), the entire content of which is incorporated herein by cross-reference.
It would be desirable to have a garment or exercise suit that in use creates axial compression in each of the three kinetic chains at the same time to allow the three antigravity kinetic chains to work together. The wearer of such an exercise suit could therefore exercise his or her anti-gravity muscles of the whole body at the same time as conducting normal exercise or sporting routines, during daily activities or when sitting or lying for prolonged periods. It would also be beneficial for people working in a microgravity environment to maintain a force on the body similar to the normal force of gravity and therefore prevent the deterioration of the antigravity muscles.
Where exercises or activities are performed where the upper and lower limbs take part in closed chain exercises, it may not be necessary for the exercise suit to provide additional axial compression for the upper and/or lower limb antigravity kinetic chains. Therefore, in such a case, the exercise suit would only need to be configured so that the spinal antigravity kinetic chain would have to be activated. Depending on the particular sport or activity involved, the garment or exercise suit for the spinal antigravity kinetic chain could incorporate axial compression for any or both of the upper and lower antigravity kinetic chains.
Despite a need for a garment or exercise suit that can be used to create axial compression in any or all of the three antigravity kinetic chains, such garments or suits have not been provided. The object of this invention is to meet that need.